“J-Junior. Is this really okay?”

Diret asked cautiously.

The memory of his junior nearly dying after being kidnapped by an ancient being was still fresh in his mind.

Of course, if Diret had the power, he would have gladly stabbed a cursed dagger into the insane duplicate’s back. But when you lacked power, wasn’t it wiser to bow your head?

There was nothing to gain from provoking a walking natural disaster.

“No. That bastard keeps spewing insane nonsense.”

Lee Han sounded genuinely aggrieved.

He had already caved in to the coercive threats and performed forbidden ancient magic in front of the Kalarogard students, but apparently that still wasn’t enough.

Even the demon swords from old legends that destroyed their masters weren’t this shamelessly exploitative.

“If I let him keep going, next he’ll tell me to attack the Principal.”

“Th-that may be true, but if you cut him off carelessly...”

“Hmph. I just won’t leave the school.”

With the insane duplicate nowhere in sight, Lee Han became remarkably bold.

At the moment, his anger over the constant attempts to ruin his relationships outweighed his fear.

You insolent brat.

“!”

The phantom surfaced again the moment he finished speaking.

Rather than sounding angry that Lee Han had shut off the Echo Stone on his own, the insane duplicate merely stared at him with cold, emotionless eyes.

Lee Han immediately looked away and resumed probing the Echo Stone.

There has to be a function for reconnecting remotely. I need to disable that too.

I shall make this royal acknowledge his mistake.

“!”

Both Lee Han and Diret froze in shock. Lee Han especially.

Wait. He’s capable of recognizing his own faults?

If that was true, maybe he really was superior to the Skull Principal.

Maybe the duplicate was the real one all along...?

“Are you talking about ordering me to attack seniors and professors?”

What are you talking about?

The insane duplicate looked utterly baffled.

“...Then what mistake are you talking about?”

You handle the Echo Stone better than expected. You were attempting to block access just now.

Damn it.

Lee Han hurriedly withdrew the strands of mana he had been extending through the stone like tentacles.

To think the insane duplicate could detect his mana probing the Echo Stone from that far away.

Just from the minute changes in the phantom, he had instantly figured out what Lee Han was doing.

Ordinarily, such insolence would have warranted several beheadings worthy of a magical criminal, but perhaps the insane duplicate thought highly of his disciple’s audacity. Instead of punishing him, he lectured him magnanimously.

Now then. Stop tampering with the stone.

“I refuse.”

“J-Junior...!”

Diret turned pale and tried to stop him, but Lee Han shoved his senior aside and answered bluntly.

“You keep appearing out of nowhere trying to kill me.”

The royal tried to kill you? You insolent brat. What absurd slander is this...

“What am I supposed to do when you keep shouting for me to defeat seniors and professors loud enough for everyone to hear? Do you know how strong and vicious this dark magic senior is? The professors are even stronger and more vicious!”

“...”

Even knowing it was nonsense, Diret still felt faintly wounded.

Then devise the wisdom to defeat them...

“Why do you keep saying that where everyone can hear you?!”

Regardless, that dark mage is weak and lacks ruthlessness...

“No, that’s only by your standards, Master! This person is already terrifyingly evil and vicious!”

The argument escalated fiercely.

Diret watched in silence as crimes he had never committed continued piling onto his reputation.

And surprisingly enough, Lee Han gradually began gaining the upper hand.

The moment he severed contact and refused to budge, the side at a disadvantage became the insane duplicate.

“What we agreed on was remote instruction, not randomly interfering in my life whenever you feel like it.”

It was you, insolent brat, who first sought wisdom outside the appointed times...

“If this keeps up, I’ll just contact you again after the semester ends!”

The insane duplicate glared at Lee Han with eyes filled with shock, rage, indignation, disgust, and every emotion a master inevitably felt while teaching a disciple.

How dare you...!

Unable to watch any longer, Intarendals offered advice from the side.

-Master. Disciples are shameless and ungrateful creatures by nature. No matter how sincerely their masters teach them, no matter how many treasures and teachings are bestowed upon them, they forget all gratitude and grow arrogant.

“...”

“...”

Lee Han and Diret cursed Intarendals simultaneously in their minds.

What kind of senile nonsense was that old man spouting?

How outrageous...! No matter how ungrateful someone was, how could he say something like...

-You must not think of him as a rational being like yourself, Master. Think of him as a young beast cub that has yet to mature. That is what disciples are.

The insane duplicate muttered several dignified ancient curses in response to Intarendals’ words.

Sensing his master’s mood, Intarendals quickly dragged the magical criminal away. Screams and curses echoed in the distance.

“Wh-what was that just now?”

“No idea. I didn’t hear anything.”

The insane duplicate barely suppressed his anger before speaking again.

Fine. I shall forgive you. Use the Echo Stone however you wish.

“Thank you!”

The sin of arbitrarily rejecting your master’s manifestation—you shall regret it one day.

Having achieved victory through reckless brinkmanship, Lee Han immediately transformed back into a respectful disciple.

“What are you talking about, Master? I engrave every one of your teachings into my heart. I’m merely trying to focus. Even fifth-circle magic is already overwhelming for me.”

“What?”

Diret asked blankly.

What kind of assignment had this junior received while he wasn’t looking?

...Do as you please, insolent brat. The magnanimity you received today must be passed down through your bloodline for generations.

“Yes. Yes. I’ll make sure of it.”

At last, the insane duplicate granted his disciple full control over the Echo Stone and declared he would no longer appear to issue additional commands.

It was such extraordinary magnanimity that even the duplicate himself seemed surprised. Intarendals openly wept tears of emotion.

-Such generosity has never existed before and shall never exist again. What disciple in all the worlds could receive such grace?

Enough flattery, Intarendals.

-It is not flattery!

Why can’t those two disappear together?

Lee Han watched the bizarrely compatible pair with disgust.

-Then let us send the disciple away now, Master.

Understood.

“Master! Please wait a moment!”

“?”

The knife-edge exchange had only just ended, yet Lee Han suddenly called the insane duplicate back again.

Diret stared at him in disbelief.

What now?

What is it?

“Could you explain the Black Crown one more time? Your disciple is rather slow-witted...”

Such a foolish fellow.

The insane duplicate looked at Lee Han with pity, but still began explaining once again.

As Diret listened from the side, he silently made a vow to himself.

...I should never ask about magic in front of this guy again.

Even in a situation like this, Lee Han had remembered the spell Diret asked about earlier and brought it up again.

The level of consideration was genuinely insane.

***

Princess Yukbeltire searched around for Diret.

He wasn’t in the usual lecture hall, nor in the Bone Specter Workshop on the seventh floor, leaving only one likely location: somewhere near the Dark Hall.

Sure enough, the moment she entered the dark magic school’s tower, she spotted familiar black wings. Beside Diret stood a capable junior from the same tower—Lee Han of House Wardanaz.

“So... it works like this... Even if the magic circle itself is copied perfectly, implementing the mana structure is difficult...”

“I could probably supply the mana... like this...”

“Don’t say insane things so casually... There are plenty of lunatic mages around here... If someone overhears us, we’ll be in serious trouble...”

“Who’s the lunatic mage?”

“Aaaaah!”

Diret slammed shut the book he had been using to record black magic formulas and screamed.

He had been so absorbed in the forbidden ancient magic that he never noticed Princess Yukbeltire approaching.

“Wh-when did you get here?”

“I told you earlier that I was coming.”

“...No, you didn’t.”

“Diret. Either your hearing has deteriorated or your memory is failing. Perhaps it’s a curse...”

“Hey. You said, ‘Help with my research. I’ll come find you soon.’ I distinctly remember telling you not to come.”

“?”

Princess Yukbeltire tilted her head, apparently unable to understand the problem.

Diret almost cursed before stopping himself.

There was no point cursing her anyway, and more importantly...

“Senior. Shouldn’t you clear up the misunderstanding?”

“Hmm.”

Diret pondered for a moment [N O V E L I G H T] after hearing Lee Han’s whisper.

Someone had to take the blame for using terrifying ancient magic on an outsider.

Should he reveal the truth in the name of justice and honesty and expose his junior?

Or should he shamelessly sacrifice an old friend instead?

Diret quickly made his choice.

“Let’s just say she did it...”

“?!”

Lee Han stared at him in shock.

He had naturally assumed Diret would clear things up.

“But didn’t you say you hated being falsely accused?”

“What can I do? Mages can’t spend their lives only doing things they like. Sometimes people have to endure things they hate.”

Diret answered curtly, overwhelming Lee Han through sheer momentum.

“...In exchange, she’ll help with the research. That’s enough.”

“...I’ll help too.”

“Hey. That’s going too far.”

“No. I have a conscience too.”

“Junior. You’re too...”

Diret looked at him pitifully, completely unaware that Lee Han had already spread false rumors inside <Einroguard’s Watchers>.

Where else in Einroguard could you find such an easy mark?

Ironically, Lee Han was thinking something very similar himself.

When it comes to Princess Yukbeltire, Senior Diret becomes even more of a pushover than usual.

“We’ll both help with the research!”

“!”

Princess Yukbeltire raised her eyebrows in surprise. Diret smirked proudly.

“Surprised?”

“Yes. You’ve both finally started behaving rationally.”

“...”

“...”

The two dark magic students quietly suppressed their murderous urges and maintained stiff smiles.

“So what exactly do you need help with?”

“As you know, several people at the school are currently throwing around gold without thinking. I intend to persuade them into becoming sponsors.”

“Who’s throwing money around?”

“First, Ragesa, daughter of Torgerd. She’s an admiral in a privateer fleet. Since she invested in Professor Verdus, she’ll invest in me too.”

Lee Han’s expression grew complicated.

Ragesa really was an eccentric pirate, but it still bothered him a little that every Einroguard student treated her like an easy target the moment they met her.

“Next is Duke Ikalderen.”

“Duke Ikalderen? Why him?”

“I confirmed he entered the school grounds. I need to get to him before the others do.”

Anyone listening would think they were talking about loot lying on the street.

From Duke Ikalderen’s perspective, it was truly an unpleasant conversation.

“So first, we’ll persuade Ragesa. I’ve already prepared the magic demonstration. I just need to refine it a little. Diret, handle the optimization. Wardanaz junior, supply the mana.”

“Yes! Understood!”

Ordinarily, the two dark magic students would have grumbled together.

But both Lee Han and Diret felt guilty, so they obediently accepted. They decided to help properly this time.

Unaware of the schemes hidden behind their cooperation, Princess Yukbeltire looked genuinely satisfied.

“You’ve both learned your lesson. This was the correct decision. There’s no reason either of you should refuse to participate in this magic. It’s far more valuable than conducting separate research.”

Lee Han glanced at Diret, who was silently clenching his fists, and urgently whispered:

“Senior. Endure it.”

“Grrrr... seriously...”

“She’s probably just happy in her own way.”

“She looks exactly as irritated as usual...”